Posts Tagged ‘customer relation management’
5 Simple Steps to Keep Your eBay Customers Happy
Thursday, February 7th, 2008
If you are selling on eBay, your reputation is out there for everyone to see. The eBay feedback system is on every item you sell - and potential customers can click at any time to see whether other customers have had positive experiences with you.
It is important to keep a high positive rating on eBay to keep customers’ trust.
Let’s take a look at how to do this.
Keeping Customers Happy
The best way to do this is to do exactly what you promise. When it comes to selling on eBay, there are many levels of customer relations.
1. Honesty In Listings - There is nothing more frustrating to a customer than to find what they think is the perfect collectible in mint condition, and then get the product to find out there is a chip in it, or a crack where it has been glued back together.
When writing your description for an item, make sure it is completely accurate. While many people like to make things sound better than they are, in the hopes of getting a higher sale price, you may end up losing when the person insists on a refund for false advertising.
Not only will they give you negative feedback on the deal, but also you will be out the shipping price and listing and selling fees from eBay. Always read over your descriptions twice and make sure they are descriptions that would fairly match the item, if you were the one buying it.
2. Accurate Pictures - If you are posting pictures of an item, they should be of the specific item you are selling. Many people use stock photos of a brand new version of the item they are selling. If yours doesn’t look like the one that is brand new, customers may feel like they were lied to in your photographs.
If you must use stock photos, make sure it is very clear in your description that these are stock photos of a new item, and that yours is not new or that it does not look the same.
3. Proper Shipping - While it’s acceptable to do, don’t overcharge for shipping unless you make it very clear in your description that your shipping costs are intentionally high. Many sellers try to get around the eBay listing and selling fees by charging much less for the item and very high shipping rates.
While this is legal to do, many buyers don’t pay as close of attention to the shipping price and may be frustrated when their total is much higher than they thought it should be. While it is a "buyer beware" world, sellers should also beware that an unhappy buyer can have a negative impact on their feedback.
Additionally, make sure that your shipping times and costs are very clear. Some shippers only send items out a few times a week. While this is an acceptable practice, you need to assure that your buyers know this.
4. Communication - Even the best thought-out eBay sale may not go as well as you would like. But if you are able to work out the problem with the customer, you will likely get their appreciation and some positive feedback out of the deal.
Whether an item is broken in shipping, running late, or there is some other problem with the transaction, always be available to communicate with the customer.
While every situation doesn’t have a happy solution, a little bit of attention to an unhappy customer will calm them down quite a bit.
5. Feedback - Once you have completed the transaction with the customer and they have gotten their item, ask them to give you positive feedback. You should also do the same for them if the transaction went well.
The more positive feedback, the higher your ranking and the more respectable and professional you appear to be.
Tags: customer loyalty, customer relation management, E-Commerce and E-Business, ebay, feedback, Leeia Ladpoh
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Choosing the Right Turnkey E-commerce Solution
Tuesday, November 27th, 2007
If you plan to start an online store, or if your website is not currently enabled for e-commerce, you may be looking at the choices available to you. To start your own online store, there’s a laundry list of necessities to consider - hosting, shopping cart technology, inventory management, credit card processing…the list goes on. You can either find several different companies to handle each part, or you can consider a turnkey e-commerce solution. Turnkey e-commerce packages include all aspects of setting up and maintaining an online store, all from just one company.
Whatever your current situation, you need to make sure that the turnkey e-commerce solution you’re either using or considering is right, both for you and your business. But with so many options to choose from, how do you know which one to go for?
Look for the Benefits
With the number of companies offering turnkey solutions out there, the best thing to do is to look at what’s available and choose the package that fits your needs and, most importantly, those of your customers. Since an effective turnkey e-commerce package can result in lower overheads, you can pass these savings on to your customers if you wish, ensuring more sales and repeat business.
Before shopping around for an e-commerce package, take a look at some other sites that sell what you plan to sell and make a list of specific features you would like to have on your site. Also make a list of all the back-end, administrative features you would like so you know exactly what to look for when researching your options.
Set-up and Administration
Since you’ll want to obviously concentrate on making your business as successful as possible, the last thing you’ll want to do is to have to constantly look after all the administrative aspects of your site. This is where a turnkey e-commerce solution is so useful, as your provider should offer a package that sets everything up, including credit card processing, layout and design of your online store, and back-end administration.
Shopping Cart and Shipping
Any e-commerce package should offer shopping cart technology as standard. When considering packages, ask for a demo so you can see how easily your customers will be able to add items to their cart, continue shopping, and checkout. As well as a shopping cart, a good e-commerce solution should have a feature that allows you to enter the shipping methods you plan to offer, and then calculates the shipping costs automatically for your customers.
Credit Card Processing
Since credit cards are the most popular method of online buying, you need to make sure the e-commerce package you’re considering includes credit card processing (via a secure server). Additionally, the option for PayPal and similar methods should be standard (or an easily added option) as well.
Security of the Package
A good software company will have an SSL certificate, which means that they support Secure Sockets Layer. This is an industry standard for encrypting credit card details and other personal information. You should also make sure they offer firewall protection, to minimize and risk of viruses or hacking.
Design and Layout
What makes turnkey e-commerce packages so easy to use is the fact that most (if not all) include design templates, so all you have to do is select a color scheme and upload your logo and content. Layout is extremely important, since how your site is laid out can mean the difference between a sale and an abandoned shopping cart. When shopping for a package, make sure you ask to test out or demo one of the company’s existing sites so you can see how navigable their sites are. Also make sure to ask how customizable the sites are - if you want to change anything to make your site easier for your customers to use, how easy will that be?
Inventory Management
A good product or inventory management module will allow you easily add, edit, or remove products from your store, as well as see your current inventory levels at a glance so you know what to order. Ask what kind of product and inventory management features are included in your package, and make sure they’ll meet your needs so you can stay proactive with your inventory.
Customer Relation Management (CRM)
Just as important as the sale itself is analyzing what triggered that purchase in the first place. With a dedicated CRM in place as part of your e-commerce package, you can see buying trends, allow order details to be held in memory for faster access, and let your customers track their orders. This simple functionality can mean all the difference to a customer, and make sure they come back to you, as well as recommend your services.
Although your e-commerce package choices are staggering, all it comes down to are your needs as the business owner and the needs of your customers. By listing everything that you want in an e-commerce package and then thoroughly researching your options, you can build an online store that benefits both.
Tags: CRM, customer relation management, danny brown, E-Commerce and E-Business, inventory management, turnkey, turnkey ecommerce package
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